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What Gaming Companies Thrived in 2020?

2020 was an impressive year for gaming. There were a number of important releases and milestones which will make 2020 a memorable year for those inside the industry and the gamers who enjoy their products. 

Most of the world’s gaming discourse revolves around PC and console performance titles. This is where many major budgets are spent: huge game releases and new iterations of PC components and consoles. As such, generally, fans and casual observers pay close attention to the hype and reaction. However, despite this dominance over social media discourse, mobile gaming still holds the majority of the market share, in part thanks to its popularity in Brazil and India. It’s a busy field with plenty of developments affecting smaller and more global parts.

Are you curious to learn about the specific companies that are thriving right now? These are the names to be aware of. 

Game Development Companies

Microsoft

This tech giant has not had to delay many releases due to current events. With the release of the Xbox Series X console and record numbers for the company’s live streaming service, Mixer, Microsoft is very stable right now. They are also pursuing the purchase of Discord, the communication platform which is hugely popular with gamers – the amateurs and the professionals. It is building out its gaming services.

Plus, Xbox Live subscribers and Xbox Game Pass users are also up. More people now than ever before are using Xbox products and services. The company continues to thrive on multiplayer games and shows no signs of slowing down.

In 2021, Microsoft completed the acquisition of Bethesda, the studio who’ve produced major titles like The Elder Scrolls and Fallout game series. The justification and motivation for this deal was to expand their Xbox Game Pass exclusive games catalogue. Netflix, Amazon, Apple TV, and their video content streaming service competitors have proved that original and exclusive content is where gains can be made.

Sony

Sony is doing much like Microsoft right now. The company saw an increase of 75% in their video game traffic- which is an outstanding number. With the release of their new console, more players are buying new games and placing pre-orders with the company.

Long considered the best console makers in the market, the PlayStation 5 continues the company’s reign. Their expansion into virtual reality is where it seems they’ll continue to focus their energies to help differentiate themselves for Microsoft and its Xbox.

The release of the Final Fantasy 7 Remake last year was amazing for the company. It even was featured at the IGN Game Awards in 2020, gaining the company a lot of attention.

Nintendo

While Animal Crossing New Horizons was a big one for the company, plenty of others gathered attention as well. Super Mario 3D All-Stars was a limited release and the continued performance of other exclusive titles see the Japanese company compete with Microsoft and Sony in their lane.

More games are in the pipeline for the console as is an updated console.

Other Gaming Companies

Aside from the big three developers, several other gaming-related platforms are continuing to grow. These include plenty of streaming services that focus on gaming.

Amazon

While the Amazon store sells games and lets fans pre-order their favorites, they also own Twitch now. Twitch is the world’s largest live streaming service- which focuses heavily on gaming. Now, there is an average of 1.2 million viewers using the service. Professional gamers, esports organisations, and broadcasters make use of the platform, making it the default home of live gaming content.

Google

Another live streaming service experiencing significant growth is YouTube, YouTube Gaming in particular. Viewership increased by 13% during the start of 2020 and only has gone up since. The platform is looking to become the exclusive streaming partner for esports events as well since its deal with Activision.

Plus, people are doing more than just watching their favorite streamers. Baking, knitting, and art videos are popular. While others are attempting to become YouTubers themselves and creating videos in their free time.

Mobile Gaming

We can’t leave mobile gaming out. It is too popular to not. PUBG reached one billion downloads just recently. It appears that new technologies like VR, MR, and 5G all benefit mobile much more than PC or console. 5G, coupled with cloud computing, will alleviate the stress of processing and rendering from the handsets themselves, enabling gamers to use whatever device they have access to, meaning that the most expensive options might not always have more positives. It could be that people can begin gaming at home on their TV before transitioning to their smartphone screen as they begin their public-transport commute to work.

Conclusion

Gaming’s future holds many answers to questions we’re only beginning to ask. The predominant means of entertainment could well be unrecognisable, and what is a game and what is a film could be more blurred than it even currently is. What do you want from it?

Why New Fortnite Figures Perfectly Demonstrate Mobile’s Gaming

The gaming world has spawned some huge hits through the decades, but few titles can claim to have reached the heights that Fortnite has enjoyed in recent years.

Now, further new research has analyzed the game’s move into the world of mobile and suggested that it has paid off in a particularly big way.

A huge success
Sensor Tower Store Intelligence has issued new figures which suggest that the mobile version of the game has now generated a total of $1 billion of spending through the App Store and Google Play since its launch two years ago. The US was found to account for the vast majority of the revenue, with players in the country spending more than $630 million on it.

In contrast, second-placed Great Britain generated just $38.2 million, while Switzerland was responsible for just over $36 million in third. It was also noted that the game had enjoyed its best monthly performance in over a year during April, with spending on it reaching $44.3 million across the period. An in-game concert featuring Travis Scott and the title’s launch on Google Play were thought to be factors behind the strong showing.

The power of mobile
Such findings are perhaps further clear evidence of how crucial mobile technology has become in all of our lives. Earlier this year, research by App Annie revealed that consumers spent on average three hours and 40 minutes a day on smartphones and tablets in 2019, with that figure marking an increase of 35 per cent from two years earlier. It also found that total spending across all app stores reached $120 billion last year.

Put simply, we reach for mobile devices and use apps related to so many different things every day. For example, the Bank of America outlines how it offers money management tools via apps for Apple, Android and a host of other operating systems. Picking up your phone to purchase goods from retailers like Amazon is also now second-nature for many of us, while mobile has had a big impact on the entertainment world too. Beyond material goods, mobile has also infiltrated various entertainment formats.

The online casino industry has really embraced it. Betway developed a responsive app and optimized mobile site in order to offer access to online casino gaming on the go. According to their website, the driving factor is to increase the flexibility available to users in terms of where they access roulette, blackjack or slots. Streaming the latest films and TV shows has also become a big part of life for many.

Disney+ has also made its streaming service available through an app which has been installed on over 10 million Android devices (from a total subscriber pool in excess of 50 million). Not to mention communication apps: from traditionally text-based communications apps, such as Whatsapp and Facebook messenger, to traditionally conference call-specific software like Zoom, all these companies seem to be responding to consumer demand and expanding their video call offerings for mobile.

A gaming powerhouse
However, if mobile has excelled in one area above all others, it is probably the world of gaming. While initially it became famous for more casual forms like Candy Crush, there has been a real shift in recent years with Fortnite being one of a number of major brands to move onto smartphone and tablet. Arguably the most notable example is Mario. The iconic plumber is best known for appearing in a range of games on Nintendo devices through the years, but Super Mario Run marked a sea change as he joined the mobile revolution. Further titles have followed as well, with Mario Kart Tour notably launching last year. Call of Duty has also made the leap from consoles into mobile too, while eSports favourite League of Legends is expected to join the action later this year thanks to Wild Rift.

Further growth to come?
So, does this mean that mobile is ultimately the future of gaming? Could it even potentially bring an end to other forms of the pastime? While some might draw that conclusion, it is fair to say that many other forms of technology like consoles and PCs may still have a major role to play for some time to come. However, the recent Fortnite figures and other studies certainly seem to suggest that mobile gaming is in a strong position – and all of the signs hint that its dominance may only grow in the years ahead.